Movies
[BD Review] ‘Smiley’ Will Leave Audiences Frowning
Opening in AMC theaters this weekend is Michael J. Gallagher’s Smiley, a new genre film that attempts to tap into modern technology. Unfortunately, the only thing it taps into is a wellspring of generic slasher tropes that mainstream horror fans will scoff throw popcorn at.
The movie follows Ashley (Caitlin Gerard) as a teenager (even though she looks 35-years-old) beginning college. She soon meets her roommate, Proxy (Melanie Papalia, whom also looks 35-years-old), who takes her to parties on the seemingly empty campus. There, they meet a bunch of douchebags (who all look 35-years old and have super fancy hair) that act like complete assholes for absolutely no reason. All of these horrible guys and unlikeable “teenage” girls continue to run into each other as they explore the myth of Smiley, a killer who appears in a Candyman-like fashion. In their version of Chatoulette, if you say “I did it for the lulz” (lulz means “laughs”) 3 times, Smiley will appear behind the person they’re talking to and murder them. And then, supposedly, he will come after you.
The premise is actually pretty sweet, so the failure comes in the actual execution of the film. Smiley isn’t scary because it doesn’t feel real – the kids are all 30+ years old, the campus is usually empty, and there’s a plethora of weird character dialogue (like when a girl states: “I just smoked pot, did that come out right?” Or, after one night, the protagonist’s father tells his daughter that she can quit college, something NO parent would ever do). Even the fun “party” montage feels incredibly forced and lame (it shows like 2 drinks and the guys drawing on a kid’s face. That’s every party, right? Barf).
The film’s believability also comes into question when most of Smiley’s appearances come in dream sequences. Yes, dream sequences. Smiley continues to attack the girl in her dreams, yet she’s convinced it’s real. Outside of Smiley, the filmmakers fill in chunks of emptiness with an assault of lame fake scares. Ultimately, everything the viewer sees in the movie isn’t actually scary.
It’s bad enough that this cool concept (Candyman with a hint of A Nightmare on Elm Street) is ruined by the fake scares, but the ship is finally sunk by a heavy dose of exposition that attempts at an extreme and unnecessary clarity. Smiley (the movie, not the character) is always apologizing for being “weird”. The filmmakers have a “hacker” character (the one that has Anonymous in an uproar) who over-explains his role and then lists off a million of his enemies that could be behind the murders. Then they explain it all over again, this time concluding that maybe Smiley is just pure evil? Everyone is an expert at something, mostly computers, and there are a lot of stupid red herrings.
In the end, it all comes apart when the big twist is revealed. The killer or killers’ motive is not only impossible, but also straight up bullcrap. Glasgow Phillips – who co-wrote with Gallagher – took a strong, modern idea, over-thought it and turned it into a generic ‘90s movie that’ll have you throwing popcorn at the screen. Sometimes simplicity is better. The turgid, unnecessary and deeply stupid complexity of Smiley will leave audiences frowning.
It was almost one year ago that Warner Bros. brought the entire original A Nightmare on Elm Street franchise to 4K in one massive 7-movie collection, with the limited edition SteelBook version of the set quickly selling out and becoming highly sought after. But we’re happy to report tonight that the SteelBook set is currently back in stock over on Amazon!
While supplies last, grab the Elm Street SteelBook collection for $154.99 right now!!
Orders placed for this re-release are scheduled to begin shipping out September 15, 2026.
[Related] Freddy’s Back: New ‘A Nightmare on Elm Street’ Movie in the Works at Paramount
From New Line Cinema, the collection includes the original seven films – A Nightmare on Elm Street (1984), A Nightmare on Elm Street 2: Freddy’s Revenge (1985), A Nightmare on Elm Street 3: Dream Warriors (1987), A Nightmare on Elm Street 4: The Dream Master (1988), A Nightmare on Elm Street 5: The Dream Child (1989), Freddy’s Dead: The Final Nightmare (1991), and Wes Craven’s New Nightmare (1994) – along with the uncut versions of A Nightmare on Elm Street and The Dream Child.
Two BRAND NEW SPECIAL FEATURES for this set include:
- Boiler Room Confessional: The king of slashers, Robert Englund, takes us on a journey through the dream world, sharing what inspired Freddy Krueger, his rise as a cultural icon, and the legacy of A Nightmare on Elm Street, plus his favorite kills, scenes, and more.
- Freddy’s Footnotes: Robert Englund and original A Nightmare on Elm Street filmmakers revisit iconic scenes, revealing the movie magic and chaos behind our favorite nightmares. Pull back the curtain and relive epic moments through the eyes of those who made them.
Here’s the full breakdown of included Special Features for each movie…
A Nightmare on Elm Street
· Ready Freddy Focus Points
· Commentary with Wes Craven, Robert Englund, Heather Langenkamp, Ronee Blakley, Robert Shaye, and Sara Risher
· Commentary with Wes Craven, Heather Langenkamp, John Saxon, and Jacques Haitkin
· Alternate Endings – Scary Ending, Happy Ending, Freddy Ending
· The House that Freddy Built: The Legacy of New Line Horror
· Never Sleep Again: The Making of A Nightmare on Elm Street
· Night Terrors: The Origins of Wes Craven’s Nightmares
A Nightmare on Elm Street 2: Freddy’s Revenge
· Freddy on 8th Street
· Heroes and Villains
· The Male Witch
· Psychosexual Circus
A Nightmare on Elm Street 3: Dream Warriors
· Behind the Story: Burnout
· Behind the Story: Fan Mail
· Behind the Story: The House that Freddy Built
· Behind the Story: Onward Christian Soldiers
· Behind the Story: Snakes and Ladders
· Behind the Story: That’s Showbiz
· Behind the Story: Trading 8’s
· Dokken Dream Warriors Music Video
A Nightmare on Elm Street 4: The Dream Master
· The Finnish Line
· Krueger, Freddy Krueger
· Hopeless Chest
· Let’s Makeup
A Nightmare on Elm Street 5: The Dream Child
· Behind the Story: Womb Raiders
· Behind the Story: The Sticky Floor
· Behind the Story: Take the Stairs
· Behind the Story: Hopkins Directs
· Behind the Story: A Slight Miscalculation
Freddy’s Dead: The Final Nightmare
· 86’D
· Hellraiser
· Rachel’s Dream
· 3D Demise
Wes Craven’s New Nightmare
· Commentary with Wes Craven
· NEW – Boiler Room Confessional
· NEW – Freddy’s Footnotes
· Becoming a Filmmaker
· Filmmaker
· An Insane Troupe
· The Problem with Sequels
· Two Worlds
· Welcome to Prime Time: It Really Happened
· Welcome to Prime Time: A Childhood Memory
· Welcome to Prime Time: Sometime in the Early 80s
· Welcome to Prime Time: So It Began
· Welcome to Prime Time: Beauty and the Beast
· Welcome to Prime Time: Making the Glove
· Welcome to Prime Time: Shapeshifter
· Welcome to Prime Time: The Shoot
· Welcome to Prime Time: The Revolving Room
· Welcome to Prime Time: All’s Well that Ends Well
· Welcome to Prime Time: Talalay’s Tally
· Welcome to Prime Time: It Couldn’t Have Happened
· Welcome to Prime Time: Alternate Ending Version
· Conclusion: Where Gothic Plots Come From
· Conclusion: Why We Like Gothic
· Conclusion: Sadomasochism
· Conclusion: Freddy vs. Pinhead
· Conclusion: Freddy’s Manic Energy
· Conclusion: Creating Lasting Characters in Horror
· Conclusion: No More Magic Tricks
· Conclusion: Monster with Personality
· Conclusion: Freddy as Sex Machine
· Conclusion: Campfire Stories
The Elm Street collection is available in this collectible SteelBook packaging (exclusive to Amazon) and as a standard 4K collection that’s also available now over on Amazon.
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